Five Benefits of Being an Expat in China

There's no other country in the world where I would rather be an expat than China. Teaching English in China is full of twists, turns, ups, downs and opportunities. The food is incredible, the people are great, and the cost of living is still low enough to enjoy life and have fun. Paul Chan has been an expat in China for nearly a decade, and in this post, he'll share with you some of the benefits he enjoys as an expat in China.

At this present moment in history, China is on the cutting edge of technology (re: mobile phones, VR, LCD lights, 3-D printing, etc.), building and infrastructure, transit, genetic engineering (re: world's smartest babies), and you name it! It's undeniable that living in the country where so much is happening at such a fast clip is quite exciting! Not too long ago, I saw a 3-D printing exhibit at the Bao'An library in Shenzhen! There's never a dull moment in the classes you teach when you have so much material to tap into!

Have you got any family or friends back home who have never left their home country and have misconceptions about China? Wouldn't it be great if you could demystify some of these misunderstandings about China and open their eyes to what a different and wonderful world it truly is? Of course, that would require you to get acclimatised to China, learn some Chinese, and understand Chinese culture – but then what an amazing role you'll have in the future, taking your mum and dad and friends all around China! I've seen so many people do this because they've got parents "who would never travel to see China on their own," but now that they're here, the parents are so eager, and it's that much better that they've got their son or daughter to show them around. I did this myself, and it was nice to prove to my Chinese mother (who has lived in the United States for over 40 years) that the streets of Shenzhen weren't filled with pickpockets!

If you're an expat in China, you're in the perfect location to travel around Asia. It's so much easier to explore other parts of Asia from here than it would be from back home – and the travel time is much shorter! During my time in China, I've had the opportunity to visit many incredible places within China (Xi'an, Beijing, Shanghai, Guilin, Meizhou, etc.), as well as Malaysia and Thailand – destinations I never imagined I'd visit when I was living in the United States. And it's clear that I’ll take every chance I get to explore other parts of Asia!

Working at English 1 offers a fantastic opportunity to meet all kinds of people from all over the world, with diverse backgrounds and cultures! It's such a privilege that often doesn't get talked about enough. In my school alone, you can work alongside people from all across China, not to mention colleagues from various parts of the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.! Having this kind of work environment is quite unique and enjoyable because there are so many people to learn from. If there's a major world news event, there's always someone with insight into the matter – pretty cool! What's also worth mentioning is that, even if you or your colleagues leave China at some stage, chances are you've made many genuine friendships for life (and reconnecting in another part of the world is also brilliant!).

It’s so much easier to learn Chinese in China compared to being in your home country listening to Pimsleur audio, using websites like Memrise, or relying on apps on your phone. How do I know? I tried them all before I arrived in China and retained very little of what I attempted to learn. It wasn’t until I had the opportunity to practise every day that I really started “getting” it. It's far easier to learn and retain the language when you potentially have a Chinese speaker everywhere you go. To start you off, all you need to do is point and ask a key question – zen me shuo? (怎么说?). “Zen me shuo?” means “How do you say [it/this]?” And it never fails to work. I've learned so many vocabulary words and phrases that way – and it has kept building on itself.

Before you move to China, or when you finally get there, it’s natural to feel intimidated. The country is huge, full of people, and if you're not from a big city, you're likely to feel small. I'll finish this post with some wise words from Ralph Waldo Emerson.

"A great man is always willing to be little." – Ralph Waldo Emerson